Students for International Mission Service (SIMS)

Outlook 2001

Mongolia
Matthew Bruner, DDS
Class of 1998
School of Dentistry

Serving God in the Army

The medical mission to Mongolia took place from July 21 to August 7, 2000. Twelve Army doctors from Hawaii volunteered to join their Mongolian and Australian medical counterparts in caring for people throughout the Mongolian countryside.

We slept in tents, called “gers,” and ate mutton and marmot. We were taken to a remote site by a special ops C-130 and then made our way back via an old Russian bus and some jeeps. We stopped in many villages to set up our “clinics.”

The conditions were harsh as treatment was provided in rural areas that often did not have running water or electricity. Three hundred and sixty people had more than 400 teeth extracted to help alleviate pain and infection. The internal medicine, family practice, gynecology, and dermatology physicians performed exams, diagnoses, and treatment which included minor surgeries. Providing health care and taking care of people that really need your help is what it is all about. We were proud to be a part of the U.S. Army’s medical department.

[Outlook 2001]

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